Lin Dan sails into World Championships final

Guangzhou, Aug 10 (IANS)

Lin Dan of China in action during his match against Tien Minh Nguyen of Vietnam during the Badminton World Championships at the Tianhe Gymnasium on August 10, 2013 in Guangzhou, China. (Photo by Victor Fraile/Getty Images)

Chinese badminton star Lin Dan cruised past Vietnam’s Nguyen Tien Minh in straight games to reach the men’s singles final of the World Championships in this Chinese city Saturday.

The Olympic and world champion, who was on the sidelines for the past year to spend time with his family and entered the tournament on a wildcard, will probably have another classic showdown against Lee Chong Wei if the world No. 1 beats third seeded Du Pengyu of China in second semifinal later Saturday, reports Xinhua.

“Super Dan” and his 30-year-old rival traded point for point at the start of the opening set, but the set started to go Lin’s way after he sped up in attacking and eventually took it 21-17.

A more relaxed Lin went on to dominate the second set, taking it 21-15 as the Vietnamese lost his confidence and made more errors.

“This time was Nguyen’s closest chance towards worlds’ finals. He has a strong mind and plays well, so I made full preparation before the match,” said Lin.

Talking about the possible clash against his Malaysian arch-rival Lee, Lin said, “Lee did not have rest after last year’s Olympics and his form has been good. I will do my best tomorrow.”